Pond Boss Forums STOCKING A NEW POND Types of fish to choose Feed Trained Redear Sunfish Source

I know it’s not something that’s readily available, but does anyone have a source for feed trained redear sunfish? What about any that have improved genetics and have been selectively bred for size? Looking to add a few to my pond, and just seeing if there’s anything like this out there. Thanks

I have purchased Redear Sunfish from hatcheries in Arkansas, held them and fed them from late Spring to early Fall and sold them to customers. During that time I will lose approximately 40% that do not convert to feed. I know of nobody that offers feed trained RES on a regular basis.

As noted once in PBMag, Freeze-Dried Krill is a good transition food for feed training RES (at least in a small tank situation - I did it in a 100 gallon trough). They naturally eat it after it waterlogs and sinks, then get the idea that they get get it faster on the surface. After that, they generally start eating floating fish food.

I had a greater percent convert to feed using Optimal (now Endurance) feed vs. round pellets. I think the longer pieces mimicked grubs/worms vs a round piece.

Stumpy - If you want feed trained RES you will have to do that yourself. The select few here that have pellet trained RES have the best % success of using the Endurance pellet feed. I have trained RES to pellets and it is "tricky"..You will need the appropriate sized pellets for the fish that you buy. Improving pellet eating success with the small or medium size RES is IMO done with or by initially softening the pellets so they sink.

I enhanced wording for this softening technique as provided by Cecil. I soften my pellets in appropriate sized containers. Warm water works best for quicker softening.
https://forums.pondboss.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showthreaded&Number=100042#Post100042

Bill, didn't you also put worms in a blender and use that in feed training?

I hand chopped the worms for getting the RES used to eating food that I was dropping in the water column. When I saw the RES eating the worms, then I blended chopped worms into the softened pellets using fewer and fewer worms as the RES started eating the pellets. It won't take very many days for the RES to be eating the worm pieces. It takes time and patience to do all this extra effort but it works pretty good. If the pond has a lot of snails, they could be collected, crushed and blended into the softened pellets. Another item to blend into the soft pellets could be clam based bouillon. I have added fish base bouillon in the water for pellet softening.

The other pellet training method that Bruce Condello and I have used is the Mazuri brand fish starter feed. 56% protein high nutrition powder for making into a gel.
https://mazuri.com/products/mazuri-aquatic-gel-diet-for-carnivorous-fish
The Mazuri brand fish starter meal that I have it comes as a powder, you mix it with water and make a gelatin like fish food. Cut the gelatin into bite size pieces. Back in 2014 Bruce Condello says - "The small RES went directly from Mazuri powder to Aquamax 200. Today they started hammering the 300.. My YOY redear are going ape-nut over the Mazuri Gel-Feed."
I think the Mazuri powder can be mixed into already softened fish pellets or for pacing into the water for softening fish pellets..

I agree that you have to do it yourself and they take the endurance round pellets better. I have had good luck in 3 ponds training them to eat. Redear do not like direct sunlight so you have to feed them early in the morning and 30 minutes till dark. They feed better when it is cloudy in all 3 of my ponds. Main thing is you have to feed regular and be patient. I have had the best luck with redear hand feeding them. It takes time but they will do it and get big.

Hey Mr Langster, Some ??? please.
What state you in?
Where did you get your RES?
How long have you been growing RES?
How big are your largest ones?

Try a mix of floating and sinking pellets over a suspended feeding structure. Suspend a piece of tin or similar structure about a foot off the bottom and feed over that. RES do not, as noted, like surface feeding much less in bright daylight.

I live in Tennessee. I started in 2021, I have stocked 2 ponds that are mine and 4 for other people. I have some 12 inches long and really fat. I got mine from Whisker catfish Farm in Bowling Green, KY. I stock more red ear than anyone else. I stock them 50/50 with either coppernose or speckle bellies. My best pond is Red ear and Speckle Bellies. But the hybrid, the copper and the Red ear make is really cool in my other pond. So if you were stocking 500 bream total I would do 250 Red ear 250 something else. So me having luck getting them to take feed maybe, 1. That's the first fish I stock, and I am getting them taking feed before the others and, 2. I stock more of them.

Biggest Shelley that we have weighed was just over 2lbs, we have many 1.5 lbs or so. I think, I have some bigger that eat pellets but have not caught them yet. I do think that around 60 to 70 percent will take pellets. The skinny ones I have don't or do not do it often.

Good information about your CNBG,RES and SBS. Thanks for sharing that info.

Langster, I am near you in Monteagle. We have stocked 19K CNBG in the last 8 years, which is not enough for a 54 acre lake that was lacking LMB forage. We have plenty of Sunfish as well, large RES, RBS & GS. I believe they all are eating pellets, as well as some LMB that have also caught on to the feeding process...We should meet and compare notes.

I'm stocking three small ponds in Bradford, TN. Could I get some speckled bellies from you?

Alabama Fish and Pond has them in the fall only. Sometimes the Fish Wagon out of arkansas has them, usually in the fall and winter. They deliver all over Tennessee. Fish wagon price is .79 each. Alabama Fish is like 1.25 each. I think Jones carries them but they are like 1.89 each. Fish wagon probably the best bet for Bradford and Monteagle TN